Letter to President Obama on Force-Feeding at Guantánamo

November 2013

More than 35 prominent doctors and public health professionals sent this letter to President Obama and called on him to end force-feeding at Guantánamo and stop undermining medical care.

The letter highlights that some detainees remain on hunger strike and continue to be force-fed, a practice that goes against established medical ethics and has been condemned by the American Medical Association (AMA) and the World Medical Association (WMA). The signatories, who have all been leaders at major U.S. health institutions, say that participating in force-feeding compels doctors to forego their independent medical judgment.